Green Logistics Instruments: Classification and Ranking

The concepts of Sustainable development, Triple Bottom Line and ESG have a strong influence on the process of formation and operation of supply chains today. This requires the implementation of various green solutions and practices to improve supply chain sustainability. The analysis conducted of supply chain research has not revealed a universally accepted methodology to systematize green solutions and practices for their effective use in chain management. It was revealed that there are many views on the content of green solutions, insufficient specificity of their description, as well as fragmentation of the use of green solutions in relation to the elements and functions of supply chains (procurement, production, warehousing, transportation, distribution). This reduces the effectiveness of green solutions' implementation. In this study, based on the literature review, a classification of currently existing green solutions and practices is made. The classification is done according to the affiliation of supply chain elements and the functions performed by the elements to promote and process the material flow from supplier to consumer. The proposed system of methods (GLM) and instruments (GLI) of green logistics covers all known functional areas of logistics and includes 27 methods and 105 instruments. The paper performs a ranking of methods and instruments using TOPSIS, MABAC and MARCOS methods. The most and least significant GLM and GLI for each element of the supply chain, as well as for chains of complex structure in general, are determined. The results of GLM and GLI ranking can be used as a basis for the implementation of management decisions to improve the sustainability of supply chains.